Folding-clasp-typed cushioning air cylinder structure

ABSTRACT

A folding-clasp-typed cushioning air cylinder structure includes two cushioning portions, a support portion and clasp points, where an accepting space for receiving an object is formed between the two cushioning portions; the support portion is positioned between the two cushioning portions, the support portion includes a propping portion, two supporting section sections, and two connecting portions; the propping section includes a propping face and propping up the object, two ends of the propping section propping against the two cushioning portions; the two supporting sections are connected to two ends of the propping section; and, the two connecting portions respectively couple the two cushioning portions to the two respective supporting sections, the two connecting portions are substantially parallel to the propping section; and, the clasp points are positioned on the two supporting sections and couple the two cushioning portions to the two supporting sections.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This non-provisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) on Patent Application No. 100150094 filed in Taiwan, R.O.C. on 2011 Dec. 30, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an air cylinder structure, and more particularly to a folding-clasp-typed cushioning air cylinder structure.

BACKGROUND

An air tight enclosure is made of resin film, and formed into air-tight air cylinders by means of hot sealing. Furthermore, an air filling entrance for air filling is disposed therein, allowing the air tight enclosure to cushion a packed object after air is filled into the air cylinders via the air filling entrance.

Among air-filling air cylinder technologies, there is a cushioning air bag with a free opening, or a hammock structure of cushioning air bag; however they all have a common problem, i.e. the air cylinder cylinders must be formed as a face body to have a cushioning force if a corner, rhomboidal angle or edge of the enclosure is hit when an internal object drops. But, when the object drops to hit the enclosure with an acute angle thereof, a single air cylinder must be used to response the edge or rhomboidal angle of the object. However, the air cylinder cannot withstand one-dot or one-line impact force such that the cushioning protection of the object cannot be effected.

SUMMARY

To solve these technological problems, the present invention provides a folding-clasp-typed cushioning air cylinder; including two cushioning portions, a support portion and a plurality of clasp points, where an accepting space for receiving an object is formed between the two cushioning portions; the support portion is positioned between the two cushioning portions, the support portion includes a propping portion, two supporting section sections, and two connecting portions; the propping section includes a propping face and propping up the object, two ends of the propping section propping against the two cushioning portions; the two supporting sections are connected to two ends of the propping section; and, the two connecting portions respectively couple the two cushioning portions to the two respective supporting sections, the two connecting portions are substantially parallel to the propping section; and, the plurality of clasp points are positioned on the two supporting sections and couple the two cushioning portions to the two supporting sections.

In the present embodiment, the plurality of support portions on the plurality of cushioning portions can provide projecting and more highly strengthened propping faces to prop up an outer object after air filling to cushion and support it; the support portions can be used as assistance in the cushioning portions bearing the weight of an outer object and impact forces, thereby preventing the outer object from damage due to impact.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention can be more fully understood by reference to the following description and accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first preferred embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the first embodiment according to the present invention after air filling;

FIG. 3 is another schematic view of the first embodiment according to the present invention after air filling;

FIG. 4A is still another schematic view of the first embodiment according to the present invention after air filling;

FIG. 4B is a schematic view of a cushioning air bag of the first embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a lateral view of the first embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a first lateral view of a second preferred embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 7 is another lateral view of the second embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 8 is still another lateral view of the second embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a first lateral view of a third preferred embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a second lateral view of the third embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a third lateral view of the third embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 12 is a fourth lateral view of the third embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a fifth lateral view of the third embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 14 is a first lateral view of a fourth preferred embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 15 is a second lateral view of the fourth embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 16 is a third lateral view of the fourth embodiment according to the present invention;

FIG. 17 is a fourth lateral view of the fourth embodiment according to the present invention; and

FIG. 18 is a lateral view of a fifth preferred embodiment according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Please refer to FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4A and 5, in which a folding-clasp typed cushioning air cylinder structure 100 of a first preferred embodiment according to the present invention is illustrated.

The air cylinder structure 100 of the present invention includes two cushioning portions 10, a support portion 40 and a plurality of clasp points 50.

The cushioning portion 10 has a plurality of air cylinders formed by stacking two sheets of outer film 10 a together and then sticking them by means of hot sealing, and the peripheries of the cushioning portions are stuck to each other to form a bag structure, where the two sheets of outer film 10 a respectively have corresponding inner faces, an accepting space 11 is formed among these face-to-face inner faces, and articles are therefore received in the accepting space 11. In addition, the cushioning portion 10 includes a plurality of hot sealing lines 16. In an exemplary embodiment, the two outer films 10 a may be formed of a thermally activated hot-sealable material such as polyester, Polyethylene polypropylene copolymer, Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), ethylene ethyl acetate (EVA), polypropylene (PP), nylon (Nylon), and PE composite membrane, biodegradable material (biodegradable materials), the polymer material coated paper, or the like. But the present invention is not so limited, other materials may be used.

The support portion 40 is positioned between the two cushioning portions 10, and includes a propping section 41, two supporting sections 42 and two connecting portions 43, where the propping section 41 includes a propping face 411 for propping up an article, and two ends thereof props against the two cushioning portions 10; two supporting sections 42 are connected to the two ends of the propping section 41; the two connecting portions 43 connect the two cushioning portions 10 to the two respective supporting sections 42, where the two connecting portions 43 are substantially parallel to the propping section 41, but the present invention is not so limited. Preferably, the propping section 41, the two supporting sections 42 and the two connecting portions 43 can be formed into a shape such as an inverted triangle or square after being bent, but the present invention is not so limited. Whereby, an external object can be supported through buffer stretch provided by the support portion 40.

The plurality of clasp points 50 are positioned on the two supporting sections 42 and used to connect the two cushioning portions 10 to the two supporting sections 42, where the plurality of clasp points 50 are preferably positioned on the hot sealing lines 16 and clasp the two cushioning portions 10 and the two supporting sections 42 together, but the present invention is not so limited, where the plurality of clasp points 50 preferably stick the two outer films 10 a together by means of hot sealing, but the present invention is not so limited; the plurality of clasp points 50 may clasp the two cushioning portions 10 and the two supporting sections 42 together by means of adhesion depending on practical uses. Particularly, the plurality of clasp points 50 may also be positioned on one of the two supporting sections 42 to couple the two supporting section 42 together instead of on the two supporting sections 42.

The present embodiment may further be disposed with an air valve 20, mainly constituted by two sheets of inner film 10. Air is guided to fill in the cushioning portions 10 through the disposition of the air valve 20 on one of the two cushioning portions 10, thereby providing the air filling and an automatic air closing function after the air filling. In the present embodiment, a plurality of air inlet 10 e may be formed between the two sheets of inner film 10 c; each air inlet 10 e corresponds to one air cylinder; the structure of the air valve 20 here is merely exemplary, it is enough that a structure with the same effects is disposed depending on practical structure requirements. But, the present invention is not so limited, for example, each air cylinder has its own air valve 20, therefore, only one air inlet 10 e is formed between the two sheets of inner film 10 c of the air valve 20.

Particularly, the cushioning portion 10 includes an air filling passageway 9 adjacent to the position of the air valve 20. Hot sealing is used to generate hot sealing points 10 d in the air filling passageway, thereby sticking the two sheets of outer film 10 a to the two sheets of respective inner film 10 c. The two sheets of inner film 10 c can be driven to pull apart outward through the hot sealing points 10 d to strengthen the opening of the air inlet 10 e, because the two sheets of outer film 10 a are expanded from a plane body to a three-dimensional curved body and pulled apart outward after air enters the air filling passageway 9.

The internal air pressure in the cushioning portion 10 presses two sides 10 f of the two sheets of inner film 10 c after the filling air enter the cushioning portion 10 via the air filling passageway 9 and air inlet 10 e, causing the two sheets of inner film 10 c to attach the each other to seal the air inlet 10 e of the cushioning portion 10, and therefore allowing the air not to leak, thereby achieving an air locking effect. As a result, the two sheets of inner film 10 c are compressed by the air to suspend in the cushioning 10, or the two sheets of inner film 10 c might adhere to one of the two sheets of outer film 10 a; the air presses the two sheets of inner film 10 c to attach to any one of the two sheets of outer film 10 a to seal the cushioning portion 10 after entering the cushioning portion 10.

In addition, the air inlet 10 e may be formed by sticking the two sheets of inner film 10 c together by means of hot sealing before the two sheets of inner film 10 c are stacked between the two sheets of outer film 10 a, where one end of the air inlet 10 e is wider than another end thereof, allowing the easy entrance and difficult overflow of air, where the air inlet 10 e is tapered from the air filling passageway 9 to the cushioning portion 10, the curved portion of the air inlet 10 e is forced to close to achieve an airtight effect when the internal air pressure of the cushioning portion 10 grows larger, but, the present invention is not so limited, the air inlet 10 e is not limited to a curved body; it may be a dotted body or other structures changed depending on practical design requirements. In addition, the same structure of the plurality of air inlets 10 e may be disposed between the two sheets of inner film 10 c, and the different structures thereof may also be mixed.

The above cushioning portion 10 may be connected with one air inlet 10 e or the plurality of air inlets 10 e, and each air inlet 10 e may further be connected to one air filling passageway 9 or the plurality of air filling passageway 9. Furthermore, the plurality of juxtaposed cushioning portions 10 may be in air communication with one another, and may further share one air filling passageway 9 or the plurality of air filling passageways 9.

The present embodiment may also include a plurality of nodes 30, positioned on the inflatable cushioning portion 10, but the present invention is not so limited. The plurality of nodes 30 are configured such that the cushioning portion 10 positioned at the plurality of nodes 30 are bent into a plurality of nodal projecting bodies, which lie in between the two cushioning portions 10 after the cushioning portion 10 is expanded by the air entering the cushioning portion 10, where the nodes 30 are positioned on the cushioning portion 10, and a space interval 10 b exists between the node 30 and the hot sealing line 16, allowing air to flow through this space interval 10 b.

Please refer to FIG. 4B, in which the two sides of the folding-clasp-typed cushioning air cylinder structure 100 of the present invention are pre-disposed with bendable air intake stopping blocks 10 g. The lateral air cylinder can be formed naturally into a cushioning portion 10 at another side after the air cylinder sheet is bent. Specifically, the four-face cushioning portions 10 and the folding clasp support at the bottom are automatically formed after the air cylinder sheet is filled with air and mounted into an outer box. In this way, the cushioning effect can be completely applied.

Furthermore, the present embodiment may be stuck at the sides by means of hot sealing after being bent to form lateral hot sealing lines 13 c at the sides, allowing the sheet to be formed into a cushioning air bag with four-face cushioning portions 10 for receiving an object.

In the present embodiment, please refer to FIGS. 6, 7 and 8, in which the plurality of clasp points 50 include an outer clasp portion 52, positioned on the outer surface of the first cushioning portion, and used to fix the two cushioning portions 10 and the two supporting sections by sticking the outer surfaces of the plurality of supporting sections 42 and the second cushioning portion 10 by means of hot sealing. In addition, the plurality of clasp points 50 may further include inner clasp portions 54, respectively positioned the inner surface of the first supporting section 42, sticking the outer surface of the first cushioning portion 10 by means of hot sealing, and positioned the inner surface of the second supporting section 42, sticking the outer surface of the second cushioning portion 10 by means of hot sealing. In the present embodiment, the plurality of clasp points 50 are only exemplary. The present invention is not so limited; for example, a plurality of support portions 40 are included, and the plurality of support portions 40 are fixed by positioning the clasp points 50 on the two supporting sections of each support portion 40, during a practical use, as FIG. 8 shows.

In the present embodiment, please refer to FIGS. 9 to 12, in which the support portion 40 is included between the plurality of cushioning portions 10. An included angle 13 a is included between the first cushioning portion 10 and second cushioning portion 10; the included angle 13 a here is proximately in the range of 70 to 90 degrees, or 90 to 110 degrees, but the present invention is not so limited. The support portion 10 is positioned in the turning corner of the two cushioning portions 10, where the propping section 41, two supporting sections and two connecting sections 43 form an triangle, square, or other shapes after being bent; the multiple sets of support portions 40 may be connected together, and the support portion 40 is collocated with the plurality of nodes 30 and the plurality of clasp points in the cushioning portion 10. The present embodiment similarly has the coupling method of support portion 40 and the plurality of clasp points 50 in the first embodiment. In addition, the support portion 40 may also be in the form of an internal-angle folding clasp portion; the internal-angle folding clasp portion is positioned on the outer surface of the first cushioning portion 10 and hot-seals the support portion 40. Alternatively, the support portion 40 is in the form of an external-angle folding clasp portion; the external-angle folding clasp portion is positioned on the outer surface of the second cushioning 10 and hot-seals the plurality of support portions 40.

In the present embodiment, please refer to FIGS. 14 to 17, in which the first cushioning portion 10 and second cushioning portion 10 are positioned on a level line 13 b, but the present invention is not so limited. The support portions 40 may be formed into a plurality of nodal projecting bodies on the cushioning portion 10 and projected in the same direction. For example, the plurality of cushioning portions 10 are formed into a bag after air filling, and the plurality of nodal projecting bodies may face toward the internal accepting space 11 or may be projected outward; it is namely that the plurality of nodal projecting bodies may be configured for use depending on practical conditions, but the present invention is not so limited, the present embodiment is merely explanatory and exemplary. Furthermore, the folding-clasp-typed cushioning air cylinder structure 100 further includes a paper box 60, providing the cushioning portion 10 with a storing space; the plurality of nodal projecting bodies are received in the paper box 60, and an external object placed in the paper box 60 is buffered by the plurality of nodal projecting bodies.

In the present embodiment, please refer to FIG. 18, in which the nodal projecting body of the folding-clasp-typed cushioning air cylinder structure 100 may also in the form of overlapping clasp; the plurality of clasp points 50 respectively couple the nodal projecting body to the first cushioning portion 10 and to the second cushioning portion 10, where the plurality of cushioning portions 10 are hot-sealed by means of nodes that air can pass through, but the present invention is not so limited.

In the present embodiment, the plurality of support portions on the plurality of cushioning portions can provide projecting and more highly strengthened propping faces to prop against an outer object after air filling to cushion and support it; it can be used to assist the cushioning portions bearing the weight of an outer object and impact forces, thereby preventing the outer object from damage due to impact.

While the present invention has been described by the way of example and in terms of the preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention need not be limited to the disclosed embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims, the scope of which should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar structures. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A folding-clasp-typed cushioning air cylinder structure, comprising: two cushioning portions, having an accepting space for receiving an object between the two cushioning portions; a support portion, positioned between the two cushioning portions, the support portion comprising: a propping section, comprising a propping face and propping up the object, two ends of the propping section propping against the two cushioning portions; two supporting sections, connected to two ends of the propping section; and two connecting portions, respectively coupling the two cushioning portions to the two supporting sections, the two connecting portions being substantially parallel to the propping section; and a plurality of clasp points, positioned on the two supporting sections and coupling the two cushioning portions to the two supporting sections.
 2. The air cylinder structure according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of clasp points comprise an outer clasp portion, positioned on an outer surface of the first cushioning portion, hot-sealing the supporting sections and the second cushioning portion.
 3. The air cylinder structure according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of clasp points comprise inner clasp portions, respectively positioned on an inner surface of the first supporting section, hot sealing an outer surface of the first cushioning portion, and on an inner surface of the second supporting section, hot sealing an outer surface of the second cushioning portion.
 4. The air cylinder structure according to claim 1, wherein the cushioning portion comprises an air intake stopping block, the cushioning portion is bent along the air intake stopping block for the cushioning protection of another side of the object.
 5. The air cylinder structure according to claim 4, wherein the air cylinder at the bent zone is formed into an object acceptable cushioning air bag with a lateral hot sealing line at the side thereof after being bent.
 6. The air cylinder structure according to claim 1, wherein the cushioning portions comprises at least one air valve, allowing air to be filled into the cushioning portions.
 7. A folding-clasp-typed cushioning air cylinder structure, comprising: two cushioning portions, having an accepting space for receiving an object between the two cushioning portions; a support portion, positioned between the two cushioning portions, the support portion comprising: a propping section, comprising a propping face and propping up the object, two ends of the propping section propping against the two cushioning portions; two supporting sections, connected to two ends of the propping section; and two connecting portions, respectively coupling the two cushioning portions to the two supporting sections, the two connecting portions being substantially parallel to the propping section; and a plurality of clasp points, positioned on one of the supporting sections to couple the two supporting sections together.
 8. The air cylinder structure according to claim 7, wherein the plurality of clasp points comprise an outer clasp portion, positioned on an outer surface of the first cushioning portion, hot-sealing the supporting sections and the second cushioning portion.
 9. The air cylinder structure according to claim 7, wherein the plurality of clasp points comprise inner clasp portions, respectively positioned on an inner surface of the first supporting section, hot sealing an outer surface of the first cushioning portion, and on an inner surface of the second supporting section, hot sealing an outer surface of the second cushioning portion.
 10. The air cylinder structure according to claim 6, wherein the cushioning portions comprises at least one air valve, allowing air to be filled into the cushioning portions. 